Accidently Perfect (A Percabeth Fanfic)
by LilliDavies98
Summary: How did some stupid Classics project turn into one of the most confusing nights of their lives? Percy Jackson/Annabeth Chase
1. Chapter 1

*I do not own Percy Jackson or any of the characters mentioned in this story. They belong to the amazing Rick Riordan*

**Percy's POV:**

"Jackson! Would you like me to get you a pillow and a blanket? Pay attention." Mr Hall's voice rang through the classroom, snapping me out of my day-dream. I looked around, realising I had missed about twenty minutes of the lesson, including Mr Hall explaining the entire assignment we were about to get. "Sorry Mr Hall. I'll try to pay attention." Which is easier said than done for an ADHD kid like me. Mr Hall is one of the only faculty members who knows about my 'Problems', and he usually cuts me some slack, but lately it's been getting worse. Some people can only be patient for so long.

"Good to hear Percy. Now, this assignment is a pairs project. I'm going to be choosing your groups so no, Charlie and Selena, you won't be working together. I actually want these assignments done guys, it's half your grade. So no Charlie and Selena, this isn't another opportunity to get in a quick make out session before your parents get home." The room erupted into a chaos of whistling and cheering, while Charles and Selena sank slowly into their seats. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Annabeth Chase, the school's freaky genius girl, rolling her eyes. I don't know what it was, but Annabeth was just generally unliked, mainly because of the fact that she thought she was better than everyone else in the school. The sound of Mr Hall's voice pulled me back into focus as he began calling out partners, getting multiple groans in reply. "Charlie, you're with Jason. Selena, you're with Thalia…" Selena started to protest, but one look from Thalia and she was staring at her shoes. Thalia is completely bad ass! That's why she's my best friend, and had been since pre-school.

I was laughing to myself when I heard my name called, but it was followed by the one name I was praying to the gods I wouldn't get paired with. "Percy, meet Annabeth. Don't think she's going to do all the work on this one either." I looked over at her, dread written all over my face, only to see that she shared the same expression. As Mr Hall finished calling out the partners, a shrill ringing echoed through the classroom. I grabbed my backpack and shoved my classics textbook inside when a curtain of blonde hair appeared at my shoulder. "Don't expect me to fail because you're completely incompetent." A snarky, yet strangely melodic voice called to me. My eyes rolled automatically, my usual reaction to hearing her voice. "Hello to you too Annabeth." I replied. "When do you want to meet up and work?" My first comment received a displeased grunt, but I didn't get the usual abuse. Instead I found myself an hour later standing outside a small apartment. I knocked, and a familiar curtain of blonde appeared at the door. "Hey. Excuse the mess. My dad's working a double tonight so it's just us." Her voice sounded shaky and nervous.

She led me down the hall to her room, which was littered with books and other random stacks of paper. I notice a picture of her, obviously a few years ago judging by the baby face, and another woman. The other woman looked just like Annabeth. Same sandy blonde hair, same storm grey eyes. "Is this your mum?" I asked curiously, getting a half-hearted nod in return. You look just like her. How come it's just you and your dad?" from the look on her face, I knew I had touched on a sore subject. "You don't have to tell me. It's none of my business, don't worry about it." I say, but the damage has already been done. I could see tears forming in the corners of her eyes, and I felt an overwhelming urge to comfort her. My feet seemed to move by themselves, and before I could stop myself, I wrapped my arms around her. I could feel her sink into me, as if my arms were the only thing protecting her from her pain.

Suddenly, realising what was going on, she pulled away from me. "I'm sorry. Umm.. Okay, Greek mythology." She rambled, reaching for her textbook. As she pushed a stray strand of hair from her face, I felt my heartbeat falter for a second, and I couldn't stop myself from constantly glancing in her direction. "Okay, so Mr Hall said we had to pick one Ancient Greek hero and do a report on why they were an important historical figure." She said, climbing onto her bed and flipping her book open. I sat down next to her and we got to work.

About half an hour later, her voice wafted up from the book she was reading. "Hey. I don't know about you, but I could sure use a break." She said getting to her feet. "Pepsi?" I watched as she wandered off down the hall, returning with a can in each hand. She tossed one to me, then panicked as it exploded all over her bed. "Crap! Go get some towels or something!" she ordered as she stripped the Pepsi covered sheets and threw them in the wash. I handed her the towels, then stood there awkwardly, not knowing what to do. When she had finished, she glanced down at my Pepsi covered shirt. "You should probably give that to me to wash…"

**Annabeth's POV:**

What was wrong with him?! First, he spills Pepsi **everywhere**, and then just stands there like an idiot, not bothering to help clean up. That's not even mentioning the look he gave me when I offered to wash his shirt, like I was some sort of pervert. "Percy, that's going to stain your pretty white top if you don't let me wash it." Annoyancefilled my voice as I spoke. He looked at me for a moment, then reached up and pulled his shirt off over his head. I watched in awe. When he moved, every perfectly toned muscle in his chest tightened. He must have caught me staring because when I look at him again, he's smirking, clearly pleased with himself. "Get over yourself Jackson." He looked at me and burst out laughing. What can I say, his laugh is contagious. It made my stomach go all kinds of weird, and within a minute, we were collapsed in a fit of laughter. Somehow, I manage to control myself. Suddenly I realised that Percy had slowly moved closer to me. He reached up and pushed a stray strand of hair behind my ear.

I looked up into his eyes, noticing the amazing sea green colour to them, then he leaned in. His lips brushed against mine, slowly at first, then harder, His lips perfectly moulding into the shape of mine. I found my hands twisting into his soft hair as he gradually pulled away. His eyes met mine for a moment, then stuttered out something that sounded like an apology. I didn't have time to process what he said though, before I crashed my lips to his. He seemed surprised at first, but melted into the kiss, placing his hands on my hips and lifting me onto the washing machine. My arms tangled around his body, pulling him closer to me, feeling him pull me even closer still. It was the most incredible feeling I'd ever experienced. Slowly, I pulled out of the kiss, before things got more intense. "We've still got a project to do Jackson." I said mockingly, pulling him by the hand back towards the stacks of books cluttering my bedroom.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

**Percy's POV:**

This is going to sound cliché but I have no idea what came over me. When she laughed, her smile lit up her face, it was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen. I tried to concentrate on the project, but I couldn't stop myself from glancing up every five seconds. All I wanted to do was lean over and kiss her again, but I didn't, not knowing what her reaction would be. Every now and then she would catch me staring and tell me to get on with the project, but out of the corner of my eye, I would catch her looking at me.

"Annabeth, when we're done here, do you wanna… I don't know, maybe go get something to eat? I mean you don't have to…"I rambled, but I was silenced by Annabeth's lips touching mine, just for a second. "I'd love to." She grinned. Man, I've got it bad, I was thinking to myself as she looked into my eyes. We closed our books, me shoving mine untidily into my backpack, and set off out the door. I let Annabeth decide where we went to eat, and she ended up picking this small, family owned Italian place. We sat down in a private booth, and placed our orders. "I always used to come here with my dad. Then he had to start working double shifts to pay for my tuition. I hardly ever see him anymore." She said, sadness enveloping her voice. I reached over the table to hold her hand, the contact sending tingles up my arm. "I never realised. Annabeth, if you ever need anything, and I mean anything, I'm here. I want you to know that okay?" I could see the sadness hidden behind her eyes, and I felt helpless. All I wanted to do is make her feel better, but some things you can't fix with words.

"Percy, I appreciate it, really, but there's nothing you could do." Tears started to form in the corners of her eyes. I get out of my seat and slid in next to her, wrapping my arm around her and pulling her into me. "I can look after you. That is, if you'd let me." I say questioningly. She lifts her head up to face mine, and there was a brief silence, as she deliberated. " I'm sorry Percy, this is just going too fast. I don't want you to get mixed up in all my dramas. I think it would be best if we just tried being friends before we get into anything." And with that, she got up and left, just as the food arrived at the table.

_**Annabeth's POV:**_

I felt extremely guilty for running out on Percy like that, but I just couldn't do it. It was all happening so fast. We barely even knew each other. I mean , the goose bumps I get when he touches me, and the way my heart races at the sound of his voice don't mean a thing right? Oh who am I kidding? This right here has always been my problem. I never let anyone in. Always making it out to be because of some stupid, childish reason, when in reality, I just don't want the people I care about to find out how messed up I am inside. Now I'm as alone as ever.

***I know this was really short. I post lengthier chapters, I'm currently studying for an internal though. Thank you so much for reading***


	3. Chapter 3

**Percy's POV**

Watching Annabeth walk out was like a punch in the gut. I wanted nothing more than to get up and run after her, but she needed her space, so I gave it to her. She was right. This was going really fast. But what I feel in my stomach when I look at her, the butterflies, the rapid beating of my heart, trying to jump out of my chest just to get closer to her. These things I can't just ignore. There's something there, and I can see it behind those beautiful stormy grey eyes. She feels it too. I know she does.

I find myself at her door, after wandering aimlessly around town, no Idea where to go. Standing there, I can hear movement inside, hurried and flustered. I knock on the door, and the flurry of movement stops. "Annabeth? Please, can we just talk? Annabeth, there's something between us, something amazing, and you know it. I just want to talk." I call out, pleading. I stood there for a while, until I heard the deadbolt turn, and her fragile eyes peaked out. "Percy… I told you, I'm not ready for this. I'm sorry." The pain behind her eyes was unbearable. I didn't know the reason for all the hurt, but it killed me to know that she had been this scared and alone, and before today, I had never even acknowledged her.

I reached down to hold her hand in mine. "Annabeth, look, I know this is all going insanely fst. I know that we've never been close. But being with you this afternoon has made me realise, just how beautiful you are. I'm insane for thinking someone so smart, so beautiful, could ever go for someone like me. I know it's crazy, but when I look at you, it's like my heart jumps right out of my chest just to be closer to you. You don't even know how amazingly perfect you are! Because you are Annabeth Chase. You're perfect. If you could just give me the chance, I would spend every day, every minute with you, just trying to make you smile."

I was so sure she was going to close the door in my face, but she dropped her head, and took my other hand in hers. "Percy, my past is… dark. I've been through some things. I don't know whether I'll ever get over it. I'll never be the same. I just don't want you to look at me differently. I've never had anyone look at me the way you are right now." "Annabeth. Nothing you could say could change the way I feel about you." I say lifting her chin so look into her eyes. "All I want to do is make you smile." I lean in to place a kiss on her forehead, but instead I feel her lips under mine. We move together, completely synchronised, as I lift her up, her fingers tracing through my hair, and take her inside, closing the door behind us.

**Annabeth's POV**

Percy showing up at my door didn't surprise me, it was his speech that did it. I was not expecting that at all, and it scared me to think that I was completely, 100% falling for him. I will admit, we made out for a while, but it wasn't awkward at all. Everything I do with Percy feels right. We ended up on the couch, me in his lap, watching 'The Little Mermaid' which was apparently Percy's favourite movie. He knew all the words to the songs, and belted out 'Under The Sea' at the top of his lungs, making me collapse in a fit of laughter. "Hey Annabeth, what time's your dad supposed to be back?" he asked, glancing at his phone. "Umm, he's actually away until Tuesday. It's my mum's anniversary tomorrow so he's gone to Arizona to see my grandparents." I told him. "He left you alone on her anniversary? Well lucky for you, Mom just texted. She and Paul are going to visit my aunt tonight." He said grinning. I looked at him quizzically. "I'm staying."

The goofy grin on his face let up a little as he noticed the puzzled look on my face. "Annabeth, you can't be alone on a day like tomorrow. I'm staying. Don't worry, I'm very versatile." He said winking. Relief flooded through me. I had secretly been dreading being alone tomorrow. I reached up and rested my arms on his shoulders. "Thank you Percy. Really. For the first time in years, I feel safe." My fingers wound their way through his hair, as I leant down to kiss his cheek. His strong arms wrapped around me and pulled me close to him, wrapping me in his warmth, and I feel at home.

Hunger starts to creep in as the movie comes to an end, and I realise that when I ran out, neither of us had eaten. "You hungry? We never got to eat anything earlier." His eyes lit up and the prospect of food. "Sure. Mind if I raid your pantry? I would love to cook dinner for my amazing new girlfriend!" he said, his goofy grin making a reappearance. "Sure thing Gordon Ramsey. Let me just show you where everything is." I start to get up when he pulls me back down onto the couch. "You sit your pretty little butt down! I'm trying to be all romantic here!" he says, winking at me and planting a quick peck on my lips before running off to the kitchen.

Within five minutes, smoke was rising out of a collection of pots and pans Percy had managed to set of fire. "Uh… I probably should have told you that I'm a crap cook. Like really bad." He said sheepishly. I start running some hot water in the sink while he scrapes the charred remains of what was supposed to be Two Minute Noodles from the pans. "Hey seaweed brain! The reason they caught on fire is because you're supposed to microwave them!" I said, splashing soapy water at him, which soaked his t shirt. "Annie, if you wanted me to take my top off again, you should've just asked." And with that, he lifted his wet shirt over his head for the second time that day. I turned my attention to the charred remains of his "cooking" attempt. I feel his arms wrap around my waist, and his breath hot on my neck. "I suggest we order in. that is, unless you want me to completely burn your house down."


	4. Chapter 4

**Annabeth's POV**

A box of pizza and seven terrible renditions of "I Can Show You The World" later, Percy and I decided to curl up in bed. I lay with my head resting on his chest, his steady heartbeat drowning out the dread the morning would bring. "Percy. I have to tell you something. I'm telling you this because I trust you." I say, sitting up. "You can tell me anything Annie." He replies, worry mixing into the sweet tone of his voice. "Tomorrow isn't just the four year anniversary of my mum's death… The day she died, we were walking home from the movies. Dad had had to meet a colleague, so mum had taken me to see the new Ice Age movie at the cinemas." My voice faltered for a second, and I contemplated just forgetting the whole thing. "Annabeth, you don't have to tell me. I'd never force anything out of you." His voice is sweet and comforting, and he wrapped his arms around me. "No, I have to tell you. I trust you Percy. The night she died, these three guys had followed us home, and forced us into an ally. They told my mum to give them her purse, but that wasn't what they wanted. Not really. Before they beat her to death… I'm sorry" I couldn't control it now. I was sobbing uncontrollably. "Shhh it's okay. It's okay. You're safe. Hey, look at me. I'll never let anything hurt you. Nothing." His comforting arms held me as I cried.

I don't remember falling asleep, but waking up next to Percy almost made today bearable. "Hey sleepy head. How you feeling?" he sounded worried, but was trying to put up a front for my benefit. His hair was sticking out at adorable angles, and his arms were still wrapped protectively around me. "Today is never a good day. I'm glad you're here Percy." He cranes his head to press his lips to mine. We stay that way for a while, laying there next to each other, not saying a word. It was peaceful, listening to the rhythm of his heart. "Percy?" "What is it Annie?" protectiveness creeped into his voice. "I saw it. The whole thing. I was twelve. Sometimes I think I'll never be able to be with someone, that way. It really messed me up Percy. That's why I study so hard. Anything to take my mind off the images that haunt me every time I close my eyes." I look down at my fingers intertwined with his. "That's why I tried to push you away. Thank you. For not giving up." "Hey. I would never try to pressure you into anything. And that whole thing from yesterday about me not looking at you the same way… You're the same amazing, smart, beautiful girl I'm crazy about.I'm crazy about you Annabeth. If anything, this just makes me want to be with you more. To keep you safe." Hey eyes were a flush of emotions.

I rose, and sat on his lap, a leg either side of him. "I know this may sound crazy, but I think I'm falling in love with you." My voice was shaky and nervous, but that all melted away when I saw his face light up. "I know for sure, I'm falling in love with you." He locked his lips to mine, slowly, but passionately all the same, like he was being gentle towards me. My hands found the familiar grove in his neck, and slid down his back. Growing confident that I felt safe, he placed his hands on my hips, pulling me on top of him as he slid down the headboard. "Percy. I don't think I can go any further." My voice was flustered, but adamant all the same. "I wasn't going to make you go any further. This is perfect." He said, brushing a lose strand of hair behind my ear, and planting another kiss on my lips.

**Percy POV**

What Annabeth had told me, had in no way lessened my attraction to her. To hear her saying the very words running through my head was exhilarating. I could see she felt the same. It was as if every worry flying round in her brain had been let go, and I was so happy that I was the reason behind it. After what she had been through, it didn't surprise me that she was scared to be intimate. That was fine by me. I just wanted her to feel comfortable with me. We can work up to that. To be honest though, I didn't care that she wasn't ready. Just being with her is enough. It's the little things she does. Like the feeling of her head resting on my chest while she sleept, or the way she subconsciously reaches up to brush a strand of hair behind her ear. Waking up with her next to me this morning had been like a gift from the gods. She was so perfect for me. She calmed me down when I felt like bouncing off the walls (which was always). I wanted to be with her all the time.

"I'm going to go hop in the shower. There's pop tarts in the cupboard. Stay away from the stove okay" She said jokingly as she got up and grabbed a towel from the linen closet. I get up and follow her down the hall. "Leaving me alone is probably not the best idea. You should probably come back over here and keep an eye on me so I don't break your house." I say, grabbing her by the waist and lifting her back into her bedroom and onto her bed. She let out an adorable giggle, and pushed me off her. "I seriously need a shower. You'll have to just try your hardest." I raise my hand over my chest and pretend to be offended as she disappears into the bathroom. I grab some pop tarts from the kitchen, just as Annabeth walks into her room wrapped in a towel. "Will only be a minute" she says closing the door and I put my, now dry, shirt back on and take a seat on the couch. She comes out about a minute later, and she is literally the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. She has tied her hair effortlessly into a messy ponytail, and she's wearing a pair of denim shorts and the jumper I left on her floor yesterday. She eyes me for a moment then says "You know, I preferred you with that shirt on the floor." She winks at me, and then walks over to sit on my lap. "You know I could say the same to you" I say back jokingly. "You look beautiful."

"So Chase, you've still got The Little Mermaid recorded. You up for another round?" I say winking at her. "Oh gods no! If I have to listen to you sing Kiss the Girl one more time I'll go insane!" she says mockingly, kissing me to stop me from protesting. "Oh just by the way, I was trying to serenade you with my singing. I thought it was pretty damn good." I say breaking away from her, and get an eye roll in return. As I go to finish off the cherry pop tart in my hand, she steals the last bit and pops it in her mouth. "Chase. You should know never to steal a man's pop tarts!" I say, and jump on top of her. She squirms to get free as I start to tickle her. Before I knew what was happening, she had managed to get on top of me, and was sitting on my chest. "Damn Annie, you got some skills." I pull myself up into a sitting position, with Annabeth still straddling me. "You're so beautiful." I say, looking into those stormy eyes. She blushes a little, then runs her hand across my cheek. "And you're prefect for me."


	5. Chapter 5

**Annabeth's POV**

"What are you going to tell your friends at school? I already know they think I'm just some obnoxious, freaky genius girl." I say, voicing the concern that had been growing inside me. "I'm going to tell them, that I have an amazingly stunning girlfriend and that they are just going to have to deal with it, because I'm falling in love with you." He says, no doubt in his voice. "They'll love you. They just have to get to know you. I mean, that's what happened with me and look where we are now." He states, pulling me onto his lap, and kissing me playfully. Everything is just so easy with Percy. He silences any doubt that passes through my mind. Percy stayed the night again last night, saying that he wouldn't let me be by myself. When I woke up screaming in the middle of the night, he was there wrapping his arms around me and calming me down. He held me until I managed to drift back off to sleep. It's Monday tomorrow. The day I'm silently insanely nervous about. The day Percy will introduce me as his girlfriend.

"Don't stress babe. If they don't like you, that's their business, not mine. I'll never let anyone get in the way of what we have." He says, lifting my lips towards his. We spent the remainder of the day doing the Classics project that started this whole thing, though neither of us could really concentrate. We had many "Study Breaks" which mainly consisted of Percy trying to convince me that his friends would love me, and us making out on top of our papers.

**Percy's POV**

*The Next Day*

I stayed the night at Annabeth's again, since neither of our parents had come home yet, and I didn't feel like she should be alone. It may have been four years ago, but she needed me there to wake her from the nightmares. "Morning beautiful." I say as Annabeth's alarm sounded and she opened her sleepy eyes. I had never seen anyone look so beautiful then Annabeth in the morning. I had gone last night to grab clothes and books for school, so after showering, I got us each a pop tart, and a glass of orange juice, and waited for her to get dressed. She came out looking even more beautiful than the day before. Her hair in the same messy ponytail, jeans and a tank top. Simple, but it drove me crazy. "What?" She asked, seeing me grinning from ear to ear. "Just trying to figure out what I did to deserve you." I said back, receiving an embarrassed flush of pink in her cheeks. "You ready?"

People flashed us some strange looks as we walked into school hand in hand. I could feel Annabeth tense up beside me, not used to being in the spotlight. I squeezed her hand encouragingly and she flashed me a small, but equally stunning version of her smile. "Are you okay?" I asked. "Yeah I'm fine. I'm just not used to the attention." She replied nervously. "Hey, I'm right here okay?" I said, receiving a small nod. Seeing that she still felt uncomfortable, I pulled her down a corridor. "Where are we going?" she said questioningly. We climb a flight of stairs until we reach a door marked 'Roof'. "Percy, I don't think we're supposed to be up here." "Don't worry. Mr Hall and I have an agreement. Things get too stressful, I come up here for a period or two. It calms me down. Thought it might do the same for you." I say, opening the door and leading her through it. We sit down against the wall by the door and I take her hand in mine. "Listen, I know you'd much rather the shadows. I don't want you to feel uncomfortable at school because of me…" I start, but I'm interrupted. "Percy, don't. I want to be with you. I've never wanted anything so much in my life. I'm ready. Let's go." I stand up and help her to her feet, pulling her into my arms as I do, and kissing her softly.

First period is classics. We walk in together, and I sit down next to her, getting a puzzled look from Thalia. I notice that the whole class had gone silent as we walked in the room, and hold Annabeth's hand under the table to reassure her. Just then Mr Hall walked into the room. "Okay settle down now, bell has gone, now hand in your assignments. Percy, Annabeth, it's nice to see you embracing your partnership." I could feel Annabeth blush next to me as the class sniggered. "Don't worry about them. This is your favourite subject, screw them." I whispered to her. It was amazing to watch Annabeth be so into something. She had always been top of the class. When I asked her why, she just said Mythology just came easy to her. She was so passionate about it, which was extremely adorable.

The bell rang to signal the end of the period, and we packed up our things. I could see that Annabeth was struggling with hers, so I took them from her, earning an eye roll. "Hey, what's a boyfriend for if not to exhibit extremely clichéd 'Boyfriend' moves. You can't just use me for my body you know!" I say sarcastically, getting that amazing laugh in return. The next period, I had P.E and she had English, so we made plans to meet up after class and I would introduce her to my friends.

**Annabeth's POV**

To say that I was nervous to be introduced to Percy's friends as his girlfriend was a huge understatement! All of English was spent trying to think of clever things that I would say, all of which made me sound completely idiotic. When the bell finally rang, I gathered my things and walked out, to find Percy waiting outside the door. "I got let out early. Had a feeling you would be stressing so I came to walk you." He explained, taking my books and putting his arm around my waist. We walk outside to the Quad, where Percy had told his friends Thalia and Jason to meet him. Sure enough, there they were. The two Grace twins. They gave Percy a wave, but upon seeing me, their expressions turned cold. Not a good start. "Hey Thalia, Jason, you know Annabeth." Percy said, surprisingly confidently. I suppose these were his friends. "Yeah we know her. What's she doing here?" Thalia asked venomously. "Well… Annabeth is my girlfriend…" they looked at Percy incredulously, then to me, then back to Percy. "Have you gone mad dude!?" Jason stammered. I looked to Percy, who was getting red faced, more so every second. More protests came from the twins. Insults towards me, towards Percy. I couldn't take it. I sprinted out of there.


	6. Chapter 6

**Annabeth's POV**

I could hear Percy calling after me, but I didn't want to turn back. I was an intruder to them. They were never going to accept me. I run, not knowing where I'm going, then collapse to the floor, tears taking over. Suddenly I feel a hand on my shoulder. "Annabeth? Hey, look at me. I don't care what they think about you. It's how I feel about you that matters, and I'm crazy about you. You amaze me Annabeth, you really do. How could someone as smart as you care about other people's opinions? I don't care what they say. I want to be with you." Percy had appeared beside me and taken me in his arms. "Crap, Annabeth, you're freezing!" He took his varsity jacket off and placed it over my shoulders. I looked up at him. Seeing the worry and the passion behind his eyes reminded me that I had to be with him. He made me feel safe. "Percy. I don't want to be "That Girl". The one who ruins her boyfriend's friendships. I can't. Everyone already does their best to move to the other side of the hall when they see me coming. I don't want to add fuel to the fire." I say looking down at my feet.

"Annabeth. You make me a better person. Being with you is like I finally know what I'm doing with my life. Don't you ever say that you are "That Girl". You're my girl." He lifts me up and kisses my cheek, then nuzzles into the crook of my neck. We stay that way for a while, locked in our embrace. "Do you wanna stay here? We could just ditch the rest of the day if you wanted." I contemplated that for a minute. "Yeah," I started. "Let's just go back to mine." We got up and walked down the hall, avoiding the stares, and out of school.

**Percy's POV**

"Okay Annabeth, you have to teach me how to cook. I want to be able to make you something other than pop tarts!" I shouted, scanning her cupboards. "Okay. But anything but two minute noodles." She said back sarcastically. She got up off the couch, looking incredibly hot still in my jacket, and started pulling boxes out of the cupboard. She held up a box of cookie mix. "You up for the challenge?" she said, tossing me the box. "Bring it on!" I replied. Several minutes and a flour fight later, we collapsed on the couch, getting flour everywhere, waiting for the oven timer. "Annie, you got a little bit of flour, like everywhere." I said jokingly to her. Which makes her slap me around the face, leaving a hand shaped flour print on my cheek. "Could say the same to you." She laughed.

I look over to her. How could anyone possibly look so beautiful covered head to toe in flour? "Staring is rude Seaweed Brain." She says, noticing me staring at her. "Sorry." I say sheepishly. "You're so beautiful Annabeth Chase." I say to her. "And you're full of it." She says back. "I'm serious. How can you not see it?" I say lifting her on top of me. "Percy, I've been told my whole life how dorky I am. It's just all I've ever known." I look up at her face, so close to mine. "Annabeth. You're the most amazing girl I've ever known." Within seconds, her lips find mine and we become perfectly synchronised. Her hair falls off her shoulder and brushes against my cheek, creating a sort of barrier, blocking everything out. My hands find their way to her hips, pulling her closer to me.

"Percy?" she says, pulling away from me. "What is it Annabeth? Am I going too fast?" I said back, worrying that maybe I had overstepped. "It's not that Percy. This is perfect." She replies, looking away. "What's on your mind babe?" I say, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear, which always makes her blush. She looks down at me, running her fingers down the side of my face. "Nothing. Don't worry I'm just being paranoid." She says, leaning back into the kiss. I went to try and ask her to tell me what she was thinking, but the oven timer went off. "CRAP the cookies are gonna burn!" she said, jumping to her feet and running towards the oven. She pulled out a batch of perfectly cooked cookies, the put them on the bench to cool down.

I got up and walked into the kitchen. Looking at her, I could still see the worry in her eyes, dread even. "Annabeth, tell me what's wrong. I can see you're trying to hide something. What is it?" I was concerned, not because of the fact that she wouldn't tell me, but because whatever it was, was making her so upset. "It's just…" She started. "I don't know. Your friends. They're never going to like me. Especially not Thalia." She said. I was confused at that last bit. "What do you mean, 'Especially not Thalia?'" I questioned. She looked up at me incredulously. "You don't know? Wow you really are a seaweed brain! Thalia's in love with you. It was so obvious today in the quad." She looked at me as if she had just been slapped. "Annabeth, Thalia's just a friend that's all. And anyway, I've known her since preschool. That would just be weird. There's nothing to worry about. I'm yours, always will be." I say, placing a kiss on her forehead.

**Annabeth's POV**

I felt so close to Percy. I wanted nothing more than to be able to be intimate with him, but every time things get intense, all I can see in my head is that night. I wish I could just forget it all, but things like that will never really leave you. They stay trapped in the back of your mind, just waiting for a chance to show their face again. To quote John Green, "That's the thing about pain. It demands to be felt." I loved Percy. I loved the way his smile could make even the darkest room glow. I loved the way he held me. I loved the sound of his heartbeat, sending me to sleep. I was never going to be included in his little trio. Thalia hated me to begin with, now I'm with Percy, things will only get worse. Ugh why couldn't life be simple?


End file.
